BOONE, N.C. — Who are the Mandela fellows? Learn all about them here. You will discover Appalachian’s cohort is affecting innovation and positive change and their ambitions for the future are as big and diverse as the continent of Africa.
Position: Founder of I AM ABLE Africa, a non-governmental organization (NGO) that works to ensure people with disabilities enjoy human rights and fundamental freedoms
Goal: To become an international advocate for the rights of persons with disabilities
Position: Provincial delegate of Coalizao, an organization that teaches life, communications and leadership skills to youth
Goal: To empower girls; to stop child marriage and teen pregnancies; to strengthen leadership skills of youth; and to involve young people in socio-economic development
Position: Head teacher, Rivers of Knowledge Academy, co-educational secondary institution
Goal: To make quality education in Nigeria truly free and accessible to all children regardless of social and financial status
Position: Program officer, UTZ, coffee and cocoa certification program
Goal: To promote good-governance practices by empowering citizens to monitor the implementation of pro-poor interventions in her country
Position: Internships with several organizations, including United Nations High Commissioner (UNHCR), the Ethiopian Federal Supreme Court, and Human Right Council-Ethiopia (EHRCO)
Goal: To pursue a career in human rights
Position: National executive director, 4-H Liberia
Goal: To build partnerships that create sustainable development
Position: Ministry of Agriculture position that helps farmers attain sustainable livelihoods; co-founder and director of organization that develops young entrepreneurs
Goal: To understand how NGOs can grow and function in a sustainable way
Position: Program coordinator, ActionAid International Somaliland, a collaborative program to eradicate poverty and injustice
Goal: To stand for the rights and freedoms of the oppressed; to empower women with assets such as conflict-resolution and leadership skills
Position: Communications officer, Village Health Works, provider of community-driven medical care
Goal: To start a nonprofit aimed at highlighting innovative solutions for Africa’s problems
Position: Works in communications department of Mediateca do Lubango, a library
Goal: To advance My Choice, a program she started for mentoring youth in life skills
Position: Co-founder, project manager of John Paul Inspire Foundation, which works to protect human rights, particularly those of women and children
Goal: To build on his work in human rights, peace advocacy and promoting youth development through entrepreneurship
Position: Resource mobilization manager for Youth First, a young women leadership program
Goal: To grow the capacity of youth development agencies in peripheral communities
Position: 2016 Namibia Youth Award Winner, in the category of “Outstanding Young Woman”
Goal: To expand opportunities for youth
Position: Food security and climate change officer, Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) Zimbabwe
Goal: To promote sustainable farming practices for food security and economic empowerment
Position: Project coordinator, Green Farmlands, her project designed to improve small scale farmers yield
Goal: To make agriculture sustainable for small-scale farmers
Position: Leader of Meru TZ Slow Food Convivium, an organization that works around the world to guarantee good, clean and fair food for everyone
Goal: To advocate for indigenous food producers’ rights and the protection of agro-biodiversity
Position: Technical director, FCPDEAM, the French-language acronym for the Congolese Federation for the Promotion and Development of Artisanal Mining
Goal: To help artisanal miners by influencing government policies related to artisanal mining, transparency and traceability of minerals
Position: Grants manager, Health Alliance International, an organization that promotes policies and support programs that strengthen government primary health care
Goal: To open an incubator training center in building trades for young single mothers
Position: Director, Sozo Network, an organization that provides leadership to disadvantaged teenagers in underserved communities and extends impacts of the Young African Leaders Initiative
Goal: To advance and expand Sozo
Position: Senior research fellow, Ruzivo Trust, a think tank focused on improving farming and rural areas
Goal: To impart knowledge and skills that strengthen the capacity of farmers to produce sustainably
Position: Founder and Director, Ikamva Labantwana Bethu (ILB), an educational program that enables children from Crossroads Township to have access to high quality education and job opportunities
Goal: To build on ILB’s success
Position: Works with PROTEC, an organization that helps prepare disadvantaged youth in South Africa for careers in the science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) fields
Goal: To expand the reach and effectiveness of the PROTEC program
Position: Fourth-year student at Kibabii University; provides computer training for children ages 5 to 14
Goal: To expand scope of training she offers children
Position: Business Administration student, University of Nairobi
Goal: To reduce illiteracy at all age levels of society
Position: Literacy advocate; youth mentor; founder of Art of a Child-Uganda, which teaches children literacy and arts skills in addition to deepening connections to their heritage; partnership coordinator for HerStory Campaign in Uganda, in which girls are taught literacy skills through the telling of their stories
Goal: To build literacy and art centers and to provide resources for educational achievement
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Mandela Washington Fellowship Institute at Appalachian
July 21, 2017
The Mandela Washington Fellows are highly accomplished young professionals from sub-Saharan Africa who are expanding their leadership skills at Appalachian, while also inspiring the campus community.
2016 Mandela Fellows share their successes and strategies
July 20, 2017
Here are two examples of the influence Appalachian State University has had on the young and promising African leaders who spend six weeks on campus as part of the Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State. Faith Tanui of Kenya and Dr. Issoufa Bachir Bounou of Niger participated in 2016.
July 20, 2017
Mandela fellow Henry Chibutu of Zambia will deliver an “Ignite” talk during the closing group ceremonies of the 2017 Mandela Washington Fellowship at Appalachian State University.
About the Office of International Education and Development
The OIED is responsible for spearheading the internationalization efforts at Appalachian. The internationalization mission of Appalachian is to develop awareness, knowledge, appreciation and respect of cultural differences in both domestic and international contexts in its students, faculty, staff and the surrounding communities. The university is also dedicated to creating a campus environment that builds the theoretical and practical skills needed to interact effectively in a global society. Learn more at https://international.appstate.edu.
About Appalachian State University
As the premier public undergraduate institution in the Southeast, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives as global citizens who understand and engage their responsibilities in creating a sustainable future for all. The Appalachian Experience promotes a spirit of inclusion that brings people together in inspiring ways to acquire and create knowledge, to grow holistically, to act with passion and determination, and to embrace diversity and difference. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Appalachian is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System. Appalachian enrolls nearly 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and graduate majors.
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